Residents urge board to oppose Atlas/Edge data center across from Parkland High over noise, air and emergency concerns

A long series of public comments focused on the proposed Atlas/Edge data center sited near Parkland High School. Community members said the project's scale and technical systems — rooftop chillers, diesel backup generators and an on-site substation — could produce continuous low-frequency noise and vibrations, increase local emissions during testing or outages, and impose new demands on local emergency responders.

"This is the noise that's coming from the HVAC systems in on the roof of the building... once the data center comes online, that droning is gonna be unwavering, continuous, 24 7," said Greg Sussman, who played an audio clip of chiller noise and cited research linking constant background noise to stress and lower academic scores. Other speakers raised technical questions about the applicant's noise study (claiming it omitted required measurement locations and did not evaluate low-frequency DBC sound) and said local zoning excludes impulsive noise from some calculations. Several speakers pointed to petitions with roughly 2,000 signatures and urged the board to pass a resolution opposing the project or to at least request more detailed plans and direct meetings with developers.

Board members acknowledged the concerns and said the township and developer currently control the planning process; administrators said they would verify whether a formal plan is before the township and discussed holding workshops or follow-up meetings to review technical materials. No formal district action was taken at the meeting.